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NEW DELHI: Tata Motors may finally be able to inject some much-needed Jaguar Land Rover DNA into its products five years after the Indian company acquired the British unit from Ford. Tata Motors, the earnings of which are largely propped up by JLR, is looking to brighten up its offerings in a domestic market that's been hit badly by an economic slump.

The parent has made headway in incorporating some of JLR's systems, processes and quality methods in new products. The delay in doing so had largely to do with the significant gap between the two companies in terms of what they sell.

Joint product development is a challenge since Tata Motors and JLR sell products at completely different ends of the spectrum, said Tim Leverton, president and head of advanced and product engineering at Tata Motors' Engineering and Research Centre or ERC, ahead of the 12 {+t} {+h} Auto Expo.

Finding a match in terms of business case and economics is very difficult but learnings on new product development and engineering have been immense, he said. "Our product portfolio methods have run through new generation processes," he said. "It is not only in the engineering domain that JLR has an edge, it is also about working with suppliers, with advanced quality planning and with manufacturing across functions. We have now set up a cross-functional project management team, which we never had before."

The essence of the system is getting products right the first time.

Experts say in a highlycompetitive market, Tata Motors products have got lost in the clutter and the company itself was confused as to what its products stood for. With the new premium hatchback Tata Bolt based on the X1 platform and compact sub-4 metre Tata Zest sedan, the company is focusing on delivering better design, improved drivability and fuel efficiency.

Tata Motors recently overhauled its R&D setup and has a product portfolio strategy planned until 2020 under the HorizonNext programme. The company will be investing 7,500 crore in the passenger vehicle business in the next few years as it launches at least 15-20 new products by the end of the decade.

Leverton declined to comment on specific products and future investments. "Everything that we are delivering on the product programme is now co-ordinated and under one roof, which is a huge shift in effectiveness of our new product pipeline," he said.

ET learns that the company is exploring a joint product code named Q5, which is based on the Freelander platform - a monocoque SUV - to take on Mahindra's XUV 500, but the project is yet to meet technical and commercial viability criteria. More than products, the two are likelier to work jointly on engines in the future, especially in the overlapping fields of 1.5 litre to 2 litre mills.

A compact engine for JLR "is still big for us, but nonetheless in that space there is an overlap and just as our engine strategy pans out, you will see some complementary nature to it, because we don't want to do the same things that they are doing. The downsizing trend is going to continue even more aggressively across segments and across markets and in the end all of those technologies are applicable," Leverton said.